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Bronco
Bronco is a heavyweight robot which competed in the first two seasons of ABC's BattleBots reboot and the third on Discovery and Science. It was built by Alexander Rose and Reason Bradley of Inertia Labs. As with most Inertia Labs robots, its weapon was a powerful pneumatic flipping arm (in fact, the arm it used was the spare from The Matador) and has almost three times the power of Toro. Bronco was a crowd favorite in the first season, throwing robots out of the BattleBox effortlessly and making it to the semi-finals before being defeated by Tombstone, but in a rather spectacular fashion. For the second season, two models of Bronco were built. One model was for fighting spinners, and the other for fighting robots with other weapons. The redesigned Bronco was longer than the original bot, and had six wheels instead of four. Like last season, it did really well and was once again a crowd favorite, as it beat Blacksmith, Chrome Fly, and Razorback respectively before being destroyed by Minotaur in the quarter-finals. For the third season, Bronco once again went through some much needed modifications. The chassis remained roughly the same shape, but Bronco returned to four-wheel drive, but it had interchangeable protection options. One included wheel guards on the back wheels only, while the other known one features a bunch of extended, bent pieces of metal, sticking out to the sides. The latter setup was used for robots with vertical spinners. It also had top armor for dealing with hammers and had 30% more power in its flipper than last season. Despite the powerful in the weapon and interchangeable armor pieces, it fell in the quarter finals again after its electrics to the wheels gave out. Robot History ABC Season 1 Bronco's first ever match was against Witch Doctor. In the match, Bronco got off to a quick start scoring a flip on Witch Doctor, but it quickly righted itself. Shaman then got under Bronco and started using its flamethrower. However, Bronco activated its flipper to get away but then drove itself into the wall where its flipper got stuck underneath. Witch Doctor used this opportunity to strike, with Shaman spraying fire on Bronco just as Witch Doctor struck it with its blade. This freed Bronco from the wall, and it quickly flipped Witch Doctor again, knocking it onto the screws just as it righted itself. This resulted in Witch Doctor being stuck on the wall with no means of freeing itself. While Shaman attempted to fight Bronco, they were counted out due to the main bot being incapacitated. Bronco won by KO in 42 seconds and advanced to the round of 16, where it faced the No.13 seed Plan X. The match against Plan X was very short. Both robots maneuvered around the BattleBox for a few seconds until, 9 seconds into the match, Bronco flipped Plan X on top of the screws. Plan X was upside down and could not move, and the match was counted as a KO about 30 seconds later. Bronco advanced to the quarterfinals, where it faced the No.5 seed Stinger. In this match, both robots went straight at each other and Bronco gave Stinger a small pop from its flipping arm. Bronco tried to flip Stinger again, but flipped itself onto the screws. Bronco was able to use its flipper to get off the screws, but it landed upside-down on the floor. Bronco was able to right itself, but Stinger got underneath and began driving Bronco around the BattleBox. Bronco then escaped, but drove itself onto the killsaws. Bronco then finished the match with a series of flips that ended with Bronco getting underneath the rear of Stinger and flipping it out of the BattleBox for an automatic KO at 1:18. This win put Bronco through to the semifinals, where it faced the feared No.1 seed Tombstone. For this match, Inertia Labs decided to extend the length of Bronco's flipper, in hopes that it would be long enough to flip Tombstone before it struck. In the beginning of the match, Bronco moved to the corner of the BattleBox while Tombstone spun up its blade. Both robots slowly moved toward each other, and Bronco struck first, flipping Tombstone onto its back. Tombstone then got a hit on Bronco, which caused it to miss its next flip. Bronco tried to get underneath the left side of the flipped Tombstone, but it missed and took another hit from Tombstone's spinning blade. This hit damaged the left side of Bronco enough to cripple that side, so it could only move in circles. Tombstone then tore the right-side wheel guard off of Bronco, and Bronco retaliated by popping Tombstone into the air. Bronco managed to flip Tombstone one more time, but the collision between the two robots ended up knocking Bronco onto its back. After seven attempts, Bronco managed to flip itself back onto its feet, but it took a massive hit from Tombstone, which ripped the front right wheel off of Bronco. Tombstone delivered one more hit to Bronco, immobilizing it completely. While Bronco tried to get moving again by firing its flipper, it was unsuccessful and it was counted out. Right before the match ended, Tombstone struck Bronco one last time, sending Tombstone flying and causing its battery packs to eject from the robot. However, Tombstone still won the match by KO at 2:26 and Bronco was eliminated from the tournament. ABC Season 2 Bronco's first match in Season 2 was against Blacksmith. For this match, Bronco's wheel guards were placed on top in order to absorb blows from Blacksmith's hammer. After the two robots dodged around each other, Bronco launched the first attack, but missed a flip. After dodging a hammer blow from Blacksmith, it then flipped the newcomer numerous times in succession, eventually flipping it onto the screws. After several more flips, Blacksmith's hammer broke off during an attempt to self-right. Bronco struggled to get a flip in after this as Blacksmith started to play defensive, but eventually it caught Blacksmith side on and flipped it into the BattleBox side wall. Blacksmith ended up high-centered on the screws, where it could not escape. In celebration, Bronco flipped Blacksmith's broken hammerhead to the ceiling as Blacksmith was counted out and Bronco won the match by KO at 2:16. This win put Bronco to the round of 32 with its No.2 seeding, where it faced the No.31 seed Chrome Fly. Deciding to use this battle as a "test", the team used the spinner model and it was turned around to drive at Chrome Fly wedge first. In the beginning of the match, Chrome Fly got its spinning blades going and Bronco made contact with it, leaving a small shower of sparks. Both robots were moving around the BattleBox and Bronco got its rear wedge under one of Chrome Fly's spinning blades. This hit caused Chrome Fly's spinning blade to rip off its top armor and stopped moving immediately. Bronco backed away and went straight at the immobile Chrome Fly. This hit ripped off one of Chrome Fly's spinning blades. Bronco then got underneath the sheets of lexan added to Chrome Fly and flipped it on its back toward the pulverizer. Bronco tried to flip Chrome Fly out of the BattleBox, but it landed on the railing and left it there. As Chrome Fly was being counted out, Bronco went after Chrome Fly's immobilized drone and tried to flip it, but it wasn't successful as it missed two times. Despite this, Bronco won by KO at 1:00 and advanced to the round of 16, where it faced the No.15 seed Razorback. This match was fairly even as Bronco decided to use its tail armor to fend off Razorback. Razorback made multiple attempts to attack Bronco's wheels, but Bronco was always facing with the rear plow. Eventually, Razorback managed to attack but got far enough on the back of Bronco and was launched into the air. After more maneuvering, Razorback again rolled up the back of Bronco and was launched into the air, once again landing on its wheels. However, when this happened again, Razorback ended up on its side and was unable to move due to a design flaw. Razorback was counted out and Bronco won by KO at 1:21. This win put Bronco to the quarterfinals, where it faced the No.7 seed, Minotaur. The match started off rather poorly for Bronco as it managed to flip Minotaur but not with the usual power it was known for due to a problem with an air valve. Minotaur wasn't having much luck damaging Bronco initially either but eventually got around to Bronco's side and attacked one of the wheels. Bronco was not able to defend itself well and took more damage to not only its underside but its wheels. As the match progressed, Bronco was losing wheels to Minotaur' s deadly drum and got down to half the wheels remaining. After Minotaur tore off another wheel, Bronco was left hopelessly trying to stay alive with a bent up flipper and only two wheels. Minotaur manged to corner Bronco and take off the remaining wheels. Bronco could no longer move and was counted out, giving Minotaur the win by KO. Discovery Season 3 Bronco's first match in Season 3 was against Bombshell. The match started out evenly as Bronco was having trouble overcoming Bombshell's ground clearance, allowing Bombshell to land some hits. Eventually Bombshell hit Bronco and nearly flipped it over, Bronco retaliated by flipping Bombshell over and into the corner where Bombshell couldn't move. Not satisfied with this, Bronco launched it twice more, with the second flip launching it out of the arena for an instant KO. Bronco's next match up was a rematch from the 1999 Long Beach BattleBots event against Lock-Jaw. For this fight, Bronco went with its anti-spinner "Twangers" to hopefully keep Lock-Jaw's weapon from making contact. The match began rather evenly as both robots were unable to make a decisive move against their opponent. Bronco took a hit from Lock-Jaw but remained upright and mostly undamaged. However, Bronco took advantage of Lock-Jaw's sudden driving issues by tossing it, losing its front flipper plate in the process. Lock-Jaw landed upside down but still in the arena so the match continued. Bronco and Lock-Jaw were now seemingly both having drive issues but Bronco persisted and threw Lock-Jaw again, this time even higher than before. However, Lock-Jaw still remained in the arena and struggled to drive against the screws. Bronco pushed Lock-Jaw up on the screws but Lock-Jaw got off and escaped. The rest of the match was mostly neither robot making a move against the other. Time ran out and the judges awarded Bronco a 3-0 unanimous decision. Bronco's 3rd opponent in Season 3 was against DUCK!. As a result, Bronco went with its normal armor configuration that protected only its rear wheels. When the match began, Bronco struggled to get underneath DUCK! and only ended up tossing itself. Bronco tried again and again only succeeded in throwing itself into the air, losing a piece of itself from the screws in the process. DUCK! continued to circle around and finally Bronco managed to toss it into the air but it was too far from the arena wall to throw it out. After some more maneuvering, Bronco missed another flip and ended up on its back where it quickly self-righted. Bronco missed one last time before getting underneath and throwing DUCK! onto the screws in front of the judges where it was able to throw it over the arena barrier for an instant KO. Bronco's next opponent was SawBlaze. For this match, Bronco added its top armor to its twanger configuration for additional defense against SawBlaze's saw. The match was off to an even start for Bronco as both robots were a bit tentative to come at one another. Bronco made the first move by tossing SawBlaze through the air, and SawBlaze landed such that its saw arm was not tucked in. Bronco threw it again and took sparks from SawBlaze's arm in return. SawBlaze tried to retaliate but was nearly thrown into the screws. Bronco missed a flip on SawBlaze before moving back into the center of the arena. Eventually, Bronco got another flip in that threw SawBlaze into the arena lexan, causing some damage to that layer of lexan. Bronco then found itself being shoved around but used its flipper to escape. Both robots then got stuck together for several seconds before Bronco was able to get free. As the match began to wind down, Bronco and SawBlaze got stuck together once more and Bronco got one more flip in before time ran out. The judges awarded a unanimous 3-0 decision to Bronco. Up next for Bronco was WAR Hawk so they went with their anti-spinner twangers. When the match began, both robots were cautious to approach for several seconds until Bronco turned to the side and took a hit from WAR Hawk. Bronco continued to fight and after lots of maneuvering, tossed WAR Hawk onto its back. WAR Hawk used the arena to self-right and Bronco took another hit from it. Bronco then got WAR Hawk on to the screws, which ground away at WAR Hawk until they got free. However, by this point, WAR Hawk had no mobility left and while WAR Hawk was being counted out, Bronco went after one of the minibots and threw it into the air. With WAR Hawk eliminated, Bronco won by KO to advance to the quarterfinals where it faced Whiplash. Once again, Bronco went with its anti-spinner twangers, however, this proved to be a mistake, as when the match got underway, Bronco faced pressure from Whiplash as it was being pushed around the arena and up against the arena barrier, where it was lifted up and thrown onto its back. Bronco was able to self-right but Whiplash was right there waiting for him and Bronco was shoved around again. Bronco tried to free itself but was unsuccessful before being let go. Bronco finally threw Whiplash over but Whiplash quickly self-righted and was back on the attack. Bronco was attacked once more up against the arena barrier but when let go, smoke began to pour out. Bronco tried to use its flipper to delay the count out but it didn't work and they were eliminated from the tournament. Wins/Losses *Wins: 11 *Losses: 3 Faruq Tauheed Introductions "Its got more bucks than Mark Zuckerberg. If you're placing bets, let 'em ride on BRONCO!" "At this rodeo, no one lasts more than eight seconds. Get ready to get flipped. It's BRONCO!" "To bring this bot down, you need a bigger posse than Justin Bieber. Call in the cavalry! Here comes BRONCO!" "Hickory, Dickory, Dock! You're about to get clocked! Here to bring the end of times. It's BRONCO!" "Saddle up for the wild horse of pneumatic force. Go flipping crazy for BRONCO!" "If it were a constellation, it would be called "The Big Flipper"! You're gonna see stars! It's BRONCO!" "This bot goes bareback, unsaddled but never rattled. It's BRONCO!" "From northern California, where they only know two things, steers and gears, it's time for a showdown at the KO Corral. It's BRONCO!" "From San Francisco, if it were a rock band, it would be The Hateful Dead. While you're trippin', it's flippin', BRONCO!" "This bot is so scary, it could be on Danger Things and send you flipping upside down, they're about to turn it up to 11. It's BRONCO!" "Once, doce, trece, catorce, you don't want none of this horsey. Say hasta luego, it's BRONCO!" "They're the masters of the flipping universe. Their pistons pack a punch. They make other bots lose their lunch. It's the kings of fling, BRONCO!" "It's the rodeo king, you're the rodeo clown and we all know how this'll go down. Here to cause some bleeding, the always stampeding. It's BRONCO!" "Last round, it sent the Hawk flying into the screws. Stand in its way and you're the next to bruise. Meet the heavyweight horse, BRONCO!" Merchandise Any appearances by Bronco in merchandise are listed below: *Bronco/HEXBUG RC *Bronco/Clutch N Clash *Bronco/Push Bot *Bronco/Tech4Kids Bronco.jpg|Bronco backstage during BattleBots 2015. Bronco_flipper_extension.png|Bronco with its flipper extension in its fight against Tombstone. Bronco official.jpg|The team with Bronco at ABC Season 2. Bronco 2018.jpg|Bronco's new design for Discovery Season 3. Bronco_s8_official.jpg|Bronco's anti-spinner "Twangers" design. Trivia *Bronco is one of three robots to appear in a more recent Pizza Hut commercial. The other two are Stinger and Lock-Jaw. *Bronco was the first known robot in BattleBots history to get a televised OOTA Chunk being the first in BattleBots history to get an OOTA during the untelevised 2009 Collegiate Championship, followed shortly thereafter by SubZero at the 2009 Java One event.. , via its fight with Stinger. In Discovery Season 3 Bronco got second OOTA, via fight with Bombshell, making it the first robot in BattleBots history to have scored two OOTA's *In every odd numbered season of the reboot Bronco flipped a robot out of the arena that was armed with some sort of lifting weapon as at least one of their weapons at some point. *Up until its fight with Lock-Jaw, Bronco has only ever won or lost by K.O. *Bronco is the only robot in Discovery Season 3 to have all four of it's Undercard matches as Main Events. *At the start of Season 3, Episode 14 of the Discovery reboot, Bronco was shown using its flipper to toss Gamma 9 into a dumpster. *All three robots that defeated Bronco were armed with a spinner of some sort, then they all lost their following fight. References Category:Heavyweight Robots Category:BattleBots Competitors Category:Robots armed with flipping weapons Category:Robots that fought on television Category:Robots with more Wins than Losses Category:Heavyweight Semifinalists Category:Animal Based Robots Category:Crowd favorites Category:Robots that have flipped another robot out of the arena Category:Heavyweight Quarterfinalists Category:Robots that could self-right Category:Robots from California Category:Robots made into toys Category:Main Event Participants Category:Main Event Winners Category:Robots fitted with Slam Cams